What To Do & See in Mississippi
This is the official UK tourism website resource for the state of Mississippi - here is where you'll find the low-down on all-things Mississippi, to help you put together a holiday you'll never forget. Planning a Road Trip just got a lot more simple, check out our Mississippi Top 10!
Mississippi is the birthplace of America's music, home of literary and artistic legends. The cradle of the Civil Rights movement, battleground of the Civil War, land of catfish and tamales. It is paradise for adventurers and centre stage for round-the-clock entertainment and year-round play.
For travellers and tourists around the world, the invitation is always open and there's a place on every one of the front porches to find your true south in Mississippi. It might be in one of the true towns like Oxford, Greenwood or Canton that embody the heart and soul of true Southern culture in all its rich and varied expressions. Head for the bright lights on the horizon and take in the non-stop action, star studded entertainment and luxuries of one of the nation's leading casino destinations at Tunica or the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
Mississippi is the place where so many creative people have found their peace, their comfort and their passion. Discover your true inspiration in places frozen in time. This is Mississippi… Find Your True South.
Natchez Trace Parkway
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Drive the historic and scenic Natchez Trace Parkway and experience the birthplaces, backgrounds and settings that have inspired the many characters.
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Places and events brought to life by the wealth of Mississippi authors like William Faulkner, John Grisham and Willie Morris, playwrights and poets who have enthralled us for generations.
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From Natchez to Nashville, Tennessee, a total of 444 miles, the Parkway follows an enchanted route through lush forests into the heart of Mississippi’s past
Tupelo
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Once inside the actual birthplace of Elvis Presley in Tupelo you'll fully understand his background in a tiny house in a tiny town.
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A statue commemorating his 1956 Homecoming concert stands in Tupelo's Fairpark District, and a driving tour highlighting 11 significant places in Elvis' childhood is also part of the visitor experience.
Natchez
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The oldest permanent settlement on the Mississippi River.
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Enter the rooms and gardens of an antebellum Natchez mansion and you'll have a true grasp of the glory, grandeur and massive wealth this river town enjoyed as the one-time wealthiest city in America - the grace and elegance of a lifestyle never experienced again.
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Many of the historic homes are open daily for tours and additional homes and gardens are open to visitors during their annual Spring and Autumn Pilgrimages.
Mississippi Blues Trail
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Follow the Mississippi Blues Trail and stand in a Mississippi Delta cotton field to feel the intensity of the heat and see the expanses of the cotton rows that touch the other side of the sky.
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Only then can you imagine the backbreaking work of the African American men, women and children and the white sharecroppers who picked the crops from daylight to dark.
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Sit in the dark and smoky Saturday night audience of a real juke joint and you'll hear the real blueness of the blues… and feel just how tired, just how lonesome, just how broken-hearted a man or woman can be.
Vicksburg
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Walk among rows and rows of fallen soldiers' graves at the Vicksburg National Military Park and you will sympathise with their difficulty in fighting to the death with all their might and passion for their way in life.
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Immerse yourself in history at the Civil War Interpretive Center in Corinth.
Mississippi River
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At water level, the Mississippi River is awesome, but it looks even more impressive from the basket of a hot-air balloon, ask anyone in The Great Mississippi River Balloon Race.
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Watch from the levee overlooking the Mississippi River in Greenville. You may be able to fathom its massive size, its terrific power and its romantic appeal.
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One of the most notorious river landings was Natchez Under-The-Hill, a lawless area where the decent citizens of Natchez, on the bluff above, dared not venture.
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The RiverPark and Museum in Tunica tell the story of the Mississippi River. A path on the grounds winds nearly two miles through a wetland forest and from the observation deck you can look out over the river. Or you can see it aboard the Tunica Queen, which offers an hour-and-a-half cruise.
Mississippi Hidden Gems:
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To really experience a taste of the Blues, spend the night in a sharecropper's shack and head to the Tallahatchie Flats. A set of original plantation cottages transported to a cotton field outside Greenwood in the Mississippi Delta.
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Oxford is a perfectly preserved small town with the sophisticated restaurants and shops of a big city and all the quirk and charm of a truly Southern town. Explore "The Square", still the centre of Oxford's commerce and activity and take in Nobel Prizewinner William Faulkner's home Rowan Oak, just minutes from the University of Mississippi's historic campus.
Mississippi Places to See:
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Be amazed at the all-new BB King Museum and Interpretive Centre in Indianola, Mississippi; a loving and highly entertaining tribute to a blues great.
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Discover more than 120 historical markers along the freshly minted Mississippi Blues Trail, an unforgettable journey into the land that spawned the single most important root source of modern popular music.
Want to find out more or need some holiday advice about Mississippi? Then please get in touch - our Mississippi State experts are always happy to help!
